Thursday, December 23, 2010

Haven't blogged in a while. Been busy with a few things lately. My son was a week late but arrived safe and sound on November 29th 2010. He is a very happy baby and so sweet. My aunt arrived to help out on the 6th of December and we moved on the 7th to our new home. YIKES! It was crazy! But we are settled in. My in-laws are here for a week and my parents arrive the 27th to meet their grandchild. Matty is the first grandchild for both sides of the family so that is fun. Hopefully I will get back to stamping in the new year. For now I must rely on my stores to mail thank you cards and Christmas cards out. I guess that using the cards you make is always half the fun.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Well the due date came and went. Haven't done much stamping because I have just been waiting on this baby. I guess that is the nature of things once you have kids. All your plans go out the window. This little guy just wants to do things on his own time.

My wonderful husband and I are heading to Cheesecake Factory tonight because it will likely not happen again for a LONG time. Yum.

My two kittens are sitting in the window above the computer and they are SO cute. They bring me so much joy. Although the little kitcat has been having separation anxiety lately because I have been shutting them out of the bedroom in preparation for the new little one. Poor little muffin-Jasper he meows and meows outside the door in the morning wanting to come snuggle his parents. Lately he has been jumping to the door handle and ramming the door. Hopefully he will be weened from the bedroom before the real baby comes. Maybe that is why the little one is late.

Friday, November 12, 2010

There is a huge craft fair this weekend at a mega church near my house. I am only going as a guest and potential buyer not as a vendor. I would have done it if I didn't have to put in for my booth a month in advance. It was just too close to the due date to comfortably do that. Maybe next year I will do it instead. Can't wait to see what kind of handmade items they have. Maybe I can pick up a nice Christmas gift for Drew there. Or something to put in our new house! Can't wait to move in just a few weeks. Well, haven't done much crafting lately as I am just focused on new house and baby but I will hopefully get back into the swing of things for the holidays. Wish me luck and happy buying tomorrow.

Friday, November 5, 2010

This is a card that I made today for a few new challenges. It has a specific design and I really liked the geometric shapes to this card. I water colored the little boy in the middle and I liked that the patterned paper was striped. I did these on a slant because it almost gives the appearance that the pattern carries through the middle.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

I like very simple things. Sometimes too many embellishments make a card so busy that I can hardly tell what is going on. Plus who wants to send a card in the mail that is full of ribbon and buttons and grommets so that you practically need a box rather than an envelope. Simple and practical, that is how I like to make cards. Mail-able, visually appealing, not too busy, but still lovely.

Take this VERY simple Christmas card for example The nice thing about a card like this is that you can feasibly make a million of them and send them all around for Christmas without taking up a million hours. Of course I LOVE making the cards. But at some point I like to send them too. Part of the fun is staying in touch and reaching people with your creations.

Enjoy this very simple Noel card and Mistletoe card. Made by NBradley Stationary.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Got a few hits on my new blog last night. That is exciting. It is hard to get your products out there into the wide world so that people know you. Here are a few things that I have been reading about to help with this.

1. Keep all your brand names the same.
Blog Name
Etsy Name
Email Name
Business Card name
This makes it much easier for people when they google you and you are likely to get hits in at least one place

2. Advertise anywhere you can
This new blog for example
For the old ladies at the local craft fair (make sure they all leave with your website and email. Most of them will likely never venture there because the internet is too difficult to navigate. But if they pass your card on to their daughters and nieces that might work!)
At local businesses. I am working on getting a few of my kitty cards in veterinary centers around town.
Facebook works too but only if your friends check out the links you give them! ;)
Comment on other people's blogs and shops. This may lead them to check yours out too.

3. Do what you love to do and don't worry about the money. Hopefully if you love your product enough to put it out there eventually someone else will love it too!

Thursday, October 28, 2010

I have been making cards for a while but have recently started to sell my products. I have attended some local craft fairs. They are time consuming and often not very profitable. But I have found that they are a great way to meet fellow crafters and other interesting people. Craft fairs are also an undercover way to establish pricing. Craft goers are on a budget and they want to get the most for their buck. They have come to the fair with maybe a few $20 bills in their pocket and they want to spend it at as many booths as they can. If you are competing with someone for a product cheaper is always better. But not so cheap that they think that your product is cheaply made or that you don't make any money. If you can establish a fair price at a craft fair you know that you can get slightly more than that on-line. I say slightly more because you need to keep in mind that not only are there more people viewing and considering your product there are also WAY more people who have something similar to offer.

Even if you find yourself at a craft fair that is not very profitable there are always things to be learned.
1. Meet crafters, scope out their booths and presentation of their products
2. Check out pricing of similar products, but be sure to keep quality and profit in perspective
3. Learn how to negotiate and initiate with customers
4. Keep track of traffic, how many customers were there, how many stopped at your booth, how many were fellow crafters and not looking to buy
5. Don't get discouraged there are always other ways to sell your product

Here is a recent card that I made. I like to make cards that are white as a base because I feel like that is the best for writing on. I also like to leave all of my cards blank on the inside. If I customize it as a "Thank You" or "Birthday" "Holiday" etc it is usually on the front to leave the inside for personal customization.
This particular card uses a little girl stamp with black ink and a quote also in black ink. I then watercolored the image of the little girl using water colored pencils and a blending water brush. I liked the quote in the upper corner because it offset the negative space of that blank area and it allowed me to center my little girl. I made corresponding cards like this in all different colors. The background paper always matches the watercolor.

Let me know what you think of the card.
Check out some of my items on Etsy.com
etsy.com/shop/nbradleystationary